


Recover

by humanedspresso



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Edging, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Masturbation, Masturbation in Shower, RoyEd is implied, bathtub fluff, just fluff everywhere
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-01
Updated: 2018-09-01
Packaged: 2019-07-05 08:34:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,116
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15860037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/humanedspresso/pseuds/humanedspresso
Summary: When you're broken and hurt, sometimes all you can do is take care of yourself before starting to heal.Edward, after all he's been through, has too many troubles to count them - but he's learning to do just that, and spoil himself. And recover.





	Recover

-Sir, is that all?-

 

He hadn’t slept at all that night. He had spent it crying, tossing and turning around in his bed, trying to erase all the horrible thoughts from his mind and only pushing them deeper inside him - but he couldn’t do it anymore, it hurt too much, and he had broken down. 

 

It had taken him hours to calm down - hours of sobbing in the pillow in his arms, hours of shaking and coughing because of his tears, hours of swirling voices in his head telling him he was horrible, it was all his fault, and he deserved to feel like that, but in the end it had all stopped. He had managed to catch his breath, to relax, and to rest his red, burning eyes a little before getting up for some water and fresh air. 

 

It was a breakdown, no way around it - but he had been warned it could have happened, and even if he was exhausted he had the feeling things would have been easier now that he had finally let it all out. Still, he felt horribly, sweaty and covered in a blanket of ‘bad'. He didn’t know what ‘bad' was, but he felt it on his skin and he wanted to wash it off. 

 

He would have just showered, quickly and swiftly, but he had remembered something Winry had told him to do many times… that is, take care of himself, spoil himself every once in a while. He had never felt the need to do more than what was necessary to be ‘alright’, but that day was different - that day he really needed something special to boost his mood, so why not a bath? 

 

Thing was, he didn’t have anything scented to put in it, and had no idea how to take a relaxing bath beyond ‘hot water’, so he had decided to go to the drugstore to get some soap, maybe some essential oils, that weird stuff Winry and Al loved to use so much: on his way there, though  he had spotted a flower shop - smelled, actually - and had remembered that sometimes people liked to put petals in their bath water, as it made it smell good… so he had stopped by to buy a few. 

 

-Sir, are you alright?-

 

He jolted his head up, his eyes not clouded anymore - when had he dozed off? - and stared at the woman in front of him with his usual, grumpy face. She looked nice, actually, and a little worried, understandable considering he had gone out in his pajamas and had hair like a lion’s mane - and eyebags for days, most likely. He didn’t exactly look his best, that was for sure.

 

"Ah, y-yeah, I’m cool - sorry about that, I was, uh, daydreaming, yes. So, I, eh, I’m - how much is it?"

 

He was confused, and it was obvious - it was a little hard to focus too much on things when he felt energy-less and dragged his feet with each step, but he couldn’t exactly doze off again when he had to pay a bill. The lady chuckled lightly, making him blush in slight embarrassment, and then handed him his flowers, covered with newspapers and tied with a string. He gave her his money, having (thankfully) remembered to grab both that and his keys before going out, got the change and thanked her for her courtesy. His next stop was the drugstore to get… whatever inspired him, and an oil to put in the water.

 

Once there, though, he found that most of them had pretty strong scents, and he wasn’t sure what fit better with the flowers he had taken, and he didn’t even remember the names of said flowers to pick the same oil, so he asked for help in picking one.

 

-Considering the peculiar choice you’ve made in flowers, sir, I’d suggest something gentle, like vanilla, perhaps?-

 

"Uh, v-vanilla - yeah, sounds - sounds nice, yes, I guess it goes well with, ehm, tulips and roses and, ah, whatever - whatever this flower is..." 

 

-A chrysanthemum, sir - a truly pretty one, if I can say so myself.-

 

"Ah, uhm, thanks. It’s for - for bathwater."

 

The woman was surprised to hear that, but then confirmed vanilla to be the best choice, and suggested that, alongside petals and oils, candles would have made the atmosphere nicer… and  _ milk  _ the water gentler on his skin. He made a weird, scrunched face at that suggestion (and she chuckled at it), but then decided that he didn’t have to drink it, after all, right? It was only supposed to make his skin softer. 

 

When he got out of the store he had a bag full of stuff he wasn’t sure he would have used, mostly out of fear of doing something stupid or mess up, and… a carton of milk. Al would have gotten a stroke, seeing that without knowing the reason why. The thought was enough to make him smile weakly, and snort a little. 

 

He didn’t have much else to buy, after that, so he headed straight home, and realised he didn’t want to soil his bathwater with the dirt he felt on his body. He would have needed to take a shower anyway, even if he didn’t want to, hoping he would have managed to convince himself to bathe even if he didn’t need it explicitly: the first thing he did, though, was to lay all he needed in the bathroom on the sink - and to open the milk carton with scissors. That way, it had to be used, and considering the lack of baking ingredients and the fact that he wouldn’t have drunk that had he been dying of thirst in the desert, the only use it had left was to be poured in bath water. 

 

He laid all his other ‘supplies' on the sink - the four flowers, the candles, the vanilla oil - and then sighed, throwing the bag away, finally getting under the shower. 

 

The hot water on his skin would have been enough to relax, any other day, but it only made him feel clean… a sign that perhaps, he had been right to get all that stuff, after all. He was quick to rinse and even quicker to get out, finding himself eager to prepare the bath - unusual for him, but then again, the night before had been unusual too. His bathrobe on, he cleaned the tube of the leftover foam and then filled it with water, staring at it for a while lost in thought: as it bubbled, he went to the sink and started to carefully pick the petals off the first flower - a green rose, which he had been surprised to find out was a natural colour - and drop them in the tub. Then went the second and third flowers, two tulips, pink and white, and finally the last one: it was a chrysanthemum, as the woman at the drugstore had reminded him, a flower used for funerals and mourning, but Ling had told him once that for Xingese people they meant goodwill and prosperity, and he liked the way they looked. He had ended up getting it in the end, picking a violet one he had never seen before. 

 

He then placed all the candles on the edge if the tub, a few drops of oil, and finally the dreaded milk, which tinted the water white and cloudy… and surprised him quite a lot. Sure, he knew it would have happened, but he didn’t know he would have been so mesmerized by the swirls and waves it was going to create, and he stared at that as he waited for the tub to fill. There was a delicious scent in the air, and as he looked outside he realised it had started to rain: it wasn’t heavy, but there were thunders rumbling in the distance, and drops were pit-pattering on the window... it felt peaceful and lullying. When he lit the candles and turned the lights off, he felt surrounded by calm.

 

Still, the moment he got into the water was the one he would have described as  _ pure bliss _ . The water was hot and ‘creamy’ thanks to the milk, it smelled divine, and every muscle in his body relaxed: he didn’t even bother tying his hair and instead let it float around him.

 

It was… wonderful. There was no other sound than the rain pouring outside, no other light if not gentle flames, and the only smells were flowers and vanilla. Everything was calm, silent, gentle, and he felt cuddled by all sensations around him. He brought his arms on his belly, closing his eyes to take everything in and smile… without realising it, he ended up relaxing too much, and fell asleep. 

 

He woke up a few hours later, but nothing shook him - it was a placid, sleepy awakening, one that reminded him of fluffy blankets and birds chirping, although there was neither: the water had turned lukewarm and his fingers were plum-like, but he just chuckled at that before yawning and stretching his arms out of the tub, which sent a shiver down his spine. It was pretty chill, then, most of the candles had died out, and the scents had subsided, but it was like everything had dulled down to make his sleep better, as he wasn’t overwhelmed by anything: he brought his hands back on his belly again, sighing happily, and pondered whether to get out of the water or stay in a little longer, and decided to stay.

 

～～～

 

He was about to get out, a few minutes later, but  _ something _ caught his attention - mindly, his half-boner, a result of his unplanned nap. 

 

He groaned a little, his cheeks red because of the water and something else… and pondered about it. He wasn’t used to indulging himself like this, he had always felt like he didn’t deserve it, like he shouldn’t have had any kind of pleasure because his brother couldn’t - but it was right, then, was it? He had fixed that mistake, he could let himself do that… he could enjoy himself a little. 

 

Sighing, he looked around (before realising that it was kind of stupid, considering he lived alone and was on the fourth floor) and laid back on the tub, propping his legs out a little and opening them to caress his thigh. 

 

Humming in content, he breathed in and closed his eyes, moving his left hand towards his balls to massage them slowly - he then tugged at them, rubbing his thumb on their skin and reaching out for his cock to stroke it: it felt good, really good, so he moved his hand higher to play with his pierced frenum. 

 

He had done that piercing himself, a long time before even getting Al’s body back, probably to punish himself: he had heard it was painful, that it could have bled a lot if done wrong, and that it needed a lot of time to heal - it was a good way to stop himself from even thinking of touching himself, but when it had healed it had backfired because touching it sent jolts of pleasure all over his groin, and made him get harder quickly… but right then, it was amazing.

 

"Oooh~..." 

 

He let out a breathy moan, his voice husky and low, and kept tugging at and moving that small metal nub - his cock grew, big and thick, its plump head got slightly red, and he moved his palm to it to rub it, squeeze it and polish it… and then, finally, to stroke it all. He kept pulling his balls for a while before both hands grabbed his cock (he was big enough for that, he noticed with a smug grin), only to throw his head back and close his eyes: lewd thoughts filled his mind, mostly kinky, about  _ him  _ and that dominant look  _ he  _ always had, so that without even noticing he found himself gently shoving one finger in his hole. 

 

Soon after, a second one followed and he pinched the skin around his piercing - pain mixed with pleasure and he moaned, panting slightly and half-opening his wide-pupiled eyes - his lashes fluttered as he swallowed on air, his fingers around his cock again to stroke it faster, harder, perhaps even harshly much to his obvious pleasure: he rocked his hips slightly, tightening his grip on his cock as he felt his climax approach, but when he felt close enough… he stopped, completely, and waited for the pleasure to subside.

 

He wasn’t punishing himself, this time - no, he was just dragging his pleasure out, edging himself just as he liked it to make his orgasm even stronger, forcing himself to feel the throb of his cock and the tingle of need running through it. He wasn’t sure he would have been able to wait very long - had  _ he _ been there, he probably would have made him squirm and perhaps  _ beg _ \-  but he was still a little sleepy and dazed, and it could have been enough. He quickly returned to his cock, pinching his piercing and running a finger on his slit, torturing his frenum with a fingernail, stroking himself either painfully slowly or extremely quickly to drive himself crazy, shoving his fingers deeper inside himself to rub his prostate and make himself drip - the smell of the bath made him dizzy and the darkness heightened his senses, the water was cold enough to make his nipples hard and more sensitive, and it washed away any lubrication he had so that he felt his hand’s each movement… it was perfect.

 

He drove himself almost to his peak again and stopped, feeling more precum come out and his cock twitch in need, his ass clenching around his fingers for any kind of stimulus, but he didn’t move: he panted, hovering his hand around his cock into the water without touching it, and then grabbed it and stroke fast for a few seconds - only to stop once more and shake, whimpering and moaning under his breath. He wanted to come, so badly, but he didn’t want to - he thought of  _ him _ again and his cock almost  _ pulsed _ , he knew he wouldn’t have been able to stop himself if he had started to stroke, so he moved his free hand to his nipple and pinched it. The moan he let out was louder, as his nipples were always sensitive - someone might have heard him, but he felt too good to care. 

 

He kept playing with his nipples, edging himself again - then he only used his other hands to rub his prostate and stopped, then returned to his cock, to his balls, and each time he gave up on touching himself his cock leaked more and more, red like a cherry and shaking along with his whole body. He was panting heavily, his eyes half-lidded, his chest raising and lowering with each breath, his hips thrusting in the water - he was going mad, he couldn’t hold it anymore, he  _ had _ to come-

 

"Ooh g-god - aah~, ah~ - a-aaah~!"

 

And he finally did, as good and strong as he had expected: he clenched his muscles, thrusted again and sputtered cum everywhere in the water - grunting and gasping, he moaned as he rode out his orgasm, almost standing up for the sheer pleasure of it all, rubbing himself hard, until his body went limp and he basked in the afterglow watching the light waves of the tub disappear. He slowly caught his breath, almost falling asleep again… but then remembered that he had a wonderful duvet and soft pillows waiting for him, and finally stood up: he was a little light-headed, but in a good, fuzzy way, so he rinsed himself with the showerhead one last time using hot water and draped himself in his bathrobe before finally draining the tub. He watched as the water disappeared, picking the soaked petals up and squeezing them, and rinsed the tub once more before starting to dry himself. 

 

～～～

 

It had taken a little longer than usual, mostly because he had used a cream Al had gifted him once (his obsession for scented stuff would have been the death of Ed one day) on his whole body - although he had noticed he already smelled nice, and the milk had indeed made his skin softer… but he had liked to spoil himself, so he was going to do it some more, not to mention he wanted to be sure there was no water left on or in his automail leg. 

 

He had also dried his hair as much as possible, using the hairdryer even if he wasn’t sure he liked it, but when he passed a hand through his soft, puffy locks he decided he loved it - especially after spending a few minutes to brush all the knots and dead hair off, it was smooth like velvet, much like his skin, and he finally felt dry and clean enough to put his pajama on. It wasn’t anything special, nothing more than a jumpsuit with a hoodie and his black tank-top - but it was his  _ favourite  _ hoodie, and his  _ favourite _ jumpsuit, all in grey and all in soft, warm cotton: he slowly dragged himself to his bedroom, smiling at his pillow-covered and freshly-washed bed and bedsheets, and climbed onto it with the soft ‘swoomph' of the duvet, music for his ears and caress for his sleepy body. It didn’t matter that he had just napped, he was ready to rest for hours till next day, and then maybe bake a pie. Definitely bake a pie. 

 

He pulled the duvet off the bed and crawled under it, grabbing one pillow for his head and one to hug and put between his legs, turned the nightlight off, and finally rested on his side.

 

Everything was soft, smelled clean and sweet, everything was divine - not even the rain made him ache, he was too warm and cozy to feel any pain in his port: the bath had relaxed his muscles so much he felt like jello, and it was great, because he could swear he was melting on the bed instead that just falling asleep. The drops gently tapped on his window, thunder rumbled in the distance, the dark wasn’t scary and menacing, but sweet and calming, and it helped him rest his eyes. Everything around him was trying to lull him to sleep, like a mother with her child… and he gave in to it. 

 

He was warm. He was cozy. He was soft, calm, relaxed. He was fine.

 

Yeah, Ed was pretty sure, that night, to be a little more than just fine. He was in his own little heaven, and he was finally recovering. 

**Author's Note:**

> I've written a whole fic using Ed's name only twice, which is curious - nothing extraordinary but I thought it was funny. 
> 
> I just wanted to write something that showed Ed taking care of himself, because he needs it (let Ed be happy please he's gone through so much) and I need it too, so here it is!
> 
> The flowers he picked have a specific meaning - white tulips are forgiveness, pink ones are happiness and confidence, green roses mean rejuvenation and cheerfulness, and the violet chrysanthemum stands for a wish to get well.
> 
> Like a flower crown, but in a bath. 
> 
> I hope y'all will enjoy this, leave kudos if you did - and a comment would definitely make my day! Thank you all!


End file.
